by Steve Cony
Camp is over. Now you face the beginning of that annual series of decision
points, and one is determining the marketing message you will deliver
for the 2003 season. Perhaps this is the very best time of year to discuss
two critical aspects of your marketing message: content and tonality.
Creative Content
On the issue of content, you have the opportunity to balance needed information
(often called “rates and dates”) with promotional messages about the value
of the camp experience that you offer. Some camp directors choose to treat
content super-seriously — never straying from a straightforward exposition
of every last detail about the workings of the camp and the requirements
of campers and parents. As a result, some camp marketing materials resemble
little more than a parent’s manual. They bypass the opportunity to eagerly
highlight what makes an individual camp special and valuable.
Why does this happen? Too often those responsible for guiding the camp
marketing message feel that to stray from the factual straight-and-narrow
may erode perceptions of the camp’s overall trustworthiness. Those who
feel this way may imagine a parent reading a more fanciful message and
responding with something like this: “Gee, that camp just said something
funny in its brochure. Maybe they don’t take their near-sacred role of
responsibility very seriously.” We can readily see that this is an association
that is unlikely to occur among the vast majority who will see or hear
the message. Therefore, it is unnecessary to reign in the marketing message
just because it might raise the eyebrows of “someone out there.”
Setting the Tone
Including humor and joyfulness in the content of the message moves us
into a discussion of tonality — the two are interrelated. In short, you
are a camp. You are expected to provide an end product of . . . fun. If
your marketing materials constitute the first look prospects get of your
camp, and if that first glimpse does not impart a sense of the fun you
create, how do you dig yourself out from that point?
Even if your specialty makes it important that your emphasis is on the
instructional component — for example, a tennis or computer camp — the
learning is still imparted in a manner that is appropriate for a summer
activity. Never fail to portray fun, enjoyment, and relaxation as part
of your operation’s total ambience.
Here are some examples of photos depicting the fun-filled experience
of camp that are fine for your Web site or your brochure:
- A camper or group of campers just totally cracked up in hysterical
laughter — over who-knows-what
- Staff members in outrageous costumes
- A camper in the dining hall with food all over his or her mouth
- A camper reading a book in an Adirondack chair
- A counselor or even a camp director with a pie in the face
Marketing the truth
On the subject of truthfulness, you have some interesting decisions to
make. As an example, consider the situation where a videographer went
out to shoot testimonials from day campers for use in the finished production.
One adorable young camper smiled a big banana grin at the camera and said,
“I love it here so much that you know what I’m going to do? In January
or February, I’m going to sneak back in and play a round or two on the
mini-golf course!”
How precious, right? However, the camp director would not allow the clip
to be included. The rationale: “We would not want anyone to possibly think
that our grounds are penetrable off-season and that some child might get
hurt while unattended on our camp equipment.”
How sad, right? This was a fanciful wish expressed by a small child —
not based in fact and certainly unlikely to occur. It was almost certain
not to happen in reality. Any reasonable parent would understand that
this is not some veiled invitation from the camp for children to sneak
back during off-season. Yet, the video was produced without this magical
moment.
In editing your message, consider your statements carefully; however,
do not express your message in such a standardized fashion that your finished
marketing tool loses its impact.
When is “puffery” acceptable?
You can appropriately “bend” the truth about absolute reality. And, when
you do it, you are supported by a variety of court decisions on the use
of “puffery” in advertising. Judges have routinely rendered opinions that
various exaggerated claims are permissible as long as those claims would
not be taken perfectly seriously and thus would not be relied upon by
a reasonable buyer. Several opinions include rulings that substantiation
is not required for claims that are clearly exaggerations or boasts upon
which a reasonable consumer would not rely. The Council of Better Business
Bureaus mirrors these decisions in its Code of Advertising.
Of course, this does not suggest the wisdom of creating a message such
as “Camp X is the best place you could possibly send your child.”
However, here is a better application: Camp Wayne for Girls, located
in Pennsylvania, maintains an exhaustive recruiting process to find outstanding
counselors. Camp owner Noel Corpuel frequently presents seminars at ACA
conferences on his interview techniques. When developing a new camp brochure,
the decision was made to use the following headline on the cover: “Select
the Camp that Selects the Best Staff.” The brochure goes on to inform
parents and prospective campers all about how the camp finds these wonderful
counselors. Even so, logic suggests that no parent would assume that this
camp is factually claiming to have the best staff of any camp whatsoever.
Thus, the claim — when reasonably explained — stands the tests of appropriateness
and persuasion.
An interesting word . . . persuasion. Perhaps an understanding of this
word and its relevance to camp marketing will help those who remain skittish
about their messages to become a bit bolder. Make no mistake, your marketing
tools are — here it comes, the dreaded “C word” — commercials about your
camp. They are not simply documentary statements of fact — they are meant
to persuade. Your prospects live their lives as consumers, and they have
certain expectations about being persuaded. In short, they accept it.
You are asking them to make a purchase, and they expect that you will
give them reasons to do so and that you will appear chauvinistic about
your operation. Thus, you need not feel uneasy or embarrassed about making
energetic claims on behalf of what you do for children.
Your first goal is to gain attention, and you cannot do this successfully
if your message recedes into the background. Your next goal is to build
interest, and this can only be done by highlighting what you do and how
well you do it. The third goal is to create desire, and this is usually
achieved in a competitive arena where you find an appropriate way to make
your offering more enticing than those of your competitors. Finally, you
need action from the prospect, and this is best accomplished by asking
for the sale.
That’s advertising, and that’s what you’re doing as you begin to think
about filling camp for 2003.
Originally published in the 2002 September/October
issue of Camping Magazine. |
